EmmaFitzwilliam Member

I would look first at water intake, and at fats. And it's possible that you've just plateaued for a bit, having lost the first 15 pounds. My diary is open, but a bit boring. Also, are you weighing out everything you eat, or measuring everything? I pretty much live by my scale or by pre-measured portions. Beyond that, my…

8 slices "lite" salami - 60 cal Hummus - 35-70 cal /2 T Wasa cracker (40-70 cal) (antipasto!) 2 eggs - 140 cal spinach 1 oz shredded cheddar cheese - 110 (spinach omelet) Wasa cracker w/ peanut butter 40, 188 calories Apple 85 2 hard boiled eggs/2 T hummus - deviled eggs (230 calories) 3/4 cup golden grahams cereal - 180…

I don't like many veggies - I wasn't raised with them. One of my friends has 3 "don't eat" items - nothing from a place with a drive through, no food with a commercial, and nothing from a pink box. I'm not as strict as he is - what works for him won't work for me. For snacks, start with what you model. That will be their…

We have slightly different definitions of "extra calories". Your mileage may vary; I aim for the 1200 minimum, regardless. I have a lot to lose, and have apparently picked a pretty aggressive schedule so my calorie target is not that far from the 1200 mark, anyway. I'm also fairly sedentary, as a rule, so don't get that…

I don't know how fast I actually gained the weight - in 2009 (I believe), I weighed 175. Some time later I was 185. Then I got sick and as of last June, I was at 225. By this June, I had dropped 5, so I consider my start weight to have been 220. However I got there, that's 45 pounds in 5 years. Not a pound a week, but that…

I resisted logging everything for *years*. Not since 1999 have I been this diligent about being honest with myself about what I eat. At home, I weigh pretty much everything, or have portion control packages. On the rare occasions when I eat out, I do my best to calculate if I don't have a nutritional information guide.…

Congratulations! I'm a long way from there, but I did hit no "muffin cup" in my bra.

I started at 220 and have lost 28 pounds in the last 89 days. Admittedly, I don't get a lot of exercise in, but I would rather be able to sustain my plan than lose that fast. For me, even 15% would have been a bit aggressive, as I'm still 5 pounds shy of that. I can't imagine losing another 16 on top of what I already…

My vegetable palate is pretty limited, but I love red bell peppers and cucumbers, with or without hummus. It's a start. Sugar snap peas? I can eat spinach, especially with mandarin oranges and grilled chicken. That's about the limit of the veggies I enjoy. I eat those and apples and berries, and don't beat myself up about…

Oh, swoon. I am dairy girl, incarnate. Lord love my Nordic ancestry. (Great-Grandpa left (Sweden? Norway?).) Northern European bloodline shows. In that short, stocky, easily hold lots of fat, way, and not that tall and willowy way. :ohwell: But I can drink copious volumes of milk with impunity. Milk, cheese, ice cream; I'm…

Congratulations. The one thing that helped me most was understanding and accepting that I need to be mindful about my eating and my exercise for the rest of my life. Diets are geared to a mindset of "I can stop when I hit my goal". Maintenance is all about not falling into old traps. For me, while my calories allowed may…

I have a digital Sharper Image, which calculates grams or ounces and has a fare function. Excellent for my needs.

What do you consider an "excessive amount" of overage, and why? Do you feel the overage is having an impact on your weight loss? Are you diabetic, or medically expected to limit your carbs? If what you are doing is working for you, and there is no medical reason to change things, I wouldn't worry about it. You can try…

Farina (Cream of Wheat) cooked in milk? Oatmeal cooked in milk? That's all I can think of.

Lite salami - 60 calories for 8 slices. Veggie plate with hummus - red bell peppers and cucumbers, especially. 160 calories for a medium red bell pepper, 1 c cucumber coins and 3 oz cherry tomatoes with 1 oz of hummus. 4 oz of grilled chicken (120 calories). Deli turkey spread with cream cheese and rolled up, maybe? An…

I'm an empire waist petite. I didn't throw away the clothes I sized out of as I gained the weight, but I'm also looking forward to new clothes. You never know what season it will be when you reach your goal, or what will be "in" at that time.

I've lost 26 pounds in three months and thought that was pretty aggressive. But then, I'm not working out at the gym. I wouldn't recommend it. The key is slow and steady. And understanding that your relationship with food may need to change. Can you sustain whatever you are doing for the rest of your life? 15 years ago, I…

Another one: Wasa cracker with a thin layer of cream cheese and a slice of roasted turkey. Or hummus in place of the cream cheese, but don't knock fat entirely. It's important for satiety, as well as immune system and nutrient absorption.

What kind of hula hoop? Party Store, Target, or "workout"? I could never hula hoop before (am I doomed if I have an empire waist?) but it looked like an easy, no impact way to do some cardio. Emma

I'm short, fat, and almost 50. :) When I started, 82 days ago, I weighed 220 pounds. 81 days later, I weigh 194 pounds. I still have about 65 pounds to go, but it can be done. My biggest challenge is making time to work out. My best success is having acknowledged that I am not dieting. I am changing my relationship with…

8 slices "lite" dry salami - 60 calories. With a medium bell pepper (46 calories) and an ounce of hummus (70 calories) 175 calories total. Hard boiled egg. 4 oz of grilled chicken is about 120 calories. 1 oz of cheddar cheese is 110 calories, but not very sustaining. With an apple (85 calories), I find it's a darn good…

I honestly don't know how these are for carbs/protein/fat - that's not something I worry about as much. As a rule, I tend to be way over on protein, a little over on fat, and quite a bit under on carbs, so these may be protein/fat heavy. Emma 8 slices "lite" dry salami - 60 calories. With a medium bell pepper (46 calories)…

As others have noted, the hard part comes in later. Everybody has different needs. The plan that helped a friend lose 140 pounds in a year isn't a plan that will work (entirely) for me. Mind you, my friend has some good benchmarks, which I tend to also meet, but not because they're goals of mine. "No food from a place with…

I've chosen to seriously curtail my butter and cheese. On days I eat cheese, it tends to be just one ounce. But then, I'm not working out the way the original poster is, either!

Absent a medical condition such as diabetes, which may require a significant diet restructuring, my experience is as follows. I've lost nearly 25 pounds in 75 days, and I get a bare minimum of exercise. And I'm notorious for my love of sugar carbs, of pasta, of bread, etc. Yes, I made the choice to eat less of those…

Using a kick-scooter? Geocaching? Belly Dance? Jump rope? Marching in place in front of the television? I'm considering the first - it's a lot easier to get started than bicycling, if one doesn't already have a bike. Cheaper, too! But - it's really only good for daylight hours, which may pose a problem as winter…

I get my exercise in by walking around the "pod" that has the bathroom for the floor my office is on. I circle the 'pod' before and after going to the washroom. :wink:

Stick with what works for you, and don't let your food choices become a topic of discussion. Personally, I'm not dieting. I'm choosing to be mindful about what I eat. In the short term, that includes considerable awareness of portion control and calories per portion; in the longer term, I'm hoping those will be less of an…

5'2", and started tracking at 220. Highest weight was 225. Over the last 7 weeks, I've lost 18.2 pounds, pretty much with mindful eating alone. I have great workout *intentions* - implementation is a bit harder. I don't call it a diet, because I'm not "dieting". I'm changing the way I eat. While the world didn't end when I…

Hi! My name is Emma; I've been actively using MFP for 2 months, and have lost almost 20 pounds. I resisted food logging for a *long* time (and had some mystery health issues that packed on 20 pounds); to be "healthy" I need to lose about 70 more. Food logging was one of the biggest positive changes. Taking in 50 calories a…